


What My Best Friend Said

by tetsurocrow



Category: Free!
Genre: Childhood Friends, F/M, Fluff, Humour, Romance, School Life, Slice of Life, Sports
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-14
Updated: 2017-12-14
Packaged: 2019-02-14 18:16:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13013430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tetsurocrow/pseuds/tetsurocrow
Summary: Tsubasa Aoi has known Yamazaki Sousuke for as long as she could remember. Their long friendship granted her the ability to notice every single detail about her childhood friend. Such that she has the ability of locating the most hidden birthmark tattooed on his skin; to pointing out his sleeping habits; and even listing his favourite underwear brand from most to least.She thought she could read everything about him. But what she could not read off of him, was his heart. If only she knew how it beats only for her.





	What My Best Friend Said

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. This story will take place when Haru and Makoto are in their 2nd year; Nagisa, Rei and Gou in their 1st.  
> 2\. Likewise, Sousuke and Rin are in their 2nd; Ai in his 1st.  
> 3\. Sousuke will be in Samezuka Academy since the beginning.  
> 4\. There will be no Haru-Rin conflict.

"Sousuke, I brought watermelon!" bellowed the thirteen-year old in her high chirpy voice, banging her small fist on the door while her other hand struggled to balance the plate of freshly-cut watermelon.  
  
From the other side of the door, she could hear her best friend's muffled disgruntled groan, obviously still lost in slumber at twelve in the afternoon. Aoi chuckled in amusement, fully expecting this reply.  
  
"Wake up, you sloth! Or are you planning to hibernate until Winter?" she continued thumping on the door, determined to get her dear friend to wake up and greet her.  
  
After what seemed like forever (five minutes, actually) of knocking and hollering, Aoi could finally hear the sound of rustling and creaking, indicating that the boy had finally gotten up from his seemingly eternal sleep. That was soon followed by trudging footsteps approaching the door, then the knob twisted and the barricade was finally swung open to reveal a very disheveled Sousuke.  
  
Garbed in his favourite gray tee and black shorts, Sousuke looked at the girl with an unhappy frown on his face. His droopy eyes were further dragged down by unbelievable bags, his dark strands were pointing to myriads of directions, and Aoi was sure that she could see a trace of dry drool on his chin.  
  
At such a baffling appearance, the girl couldn't help but to convulse in laughter. Oh, how she was going to miss looking at this ghastly sight of her same-aged childhood buddy.  
  
Sousuke's frown deepened at Aoi's reaction, but his eyes were soft as they gazed at the girl while she continued to let bubbles of laughter escape her mouth. Realizing how smitten he was for a second there, Sousuke mentally hit himself awake and gruffly asked, "Do you have to come when I was asleep?"  
  
Aoi snorted as she walked pass him to enter his room, "Of course, or you'll never wake up!"  
  
Naturally, she plopped herself down cross-legged on Sousuke's unkempt bed and settling the plate of watermelon on his bedsheet. "Come on, sleepyhead. Summer isn't Summer if you're not eating watermelons." she urged Sousuke over with a lop-sided grin, patting the vacant space next to her.  
  
Sighing, Sousuke closed the door behind him and occupied the space next to her. He accepted the big piece of watermelon Aoi handed and ate. Summer never felt so amazing.  
  
And so, within fifteen minutes, the pair spent their time together sweeping the plate clean and talking about mostly video games and stupid rumours circulating around the neighbourhood. It was all innocent fun and euphoria until Aoi spoke.  
  
"I guess this is gonna be our last Summer together, huh, Sousuke?" she wistfully looked out the window with a sad smile on her visage.  
  
Earlier, Sousuke had been all but ravishing down on the watermelon, but now he was barely even nibbling on the piece of fruit. The sweet juice melted and ran down his arm but Sousuke couldn't even care anymore. The second Aoi picked up the topic that they both dreaded, he realized that Summer this year wouldn't be all that amazing, after all.  
  
He cast his gaze downwards, staring into space as he murmured forlornly, "Are you really transferring?"  
  
Aoi chuckled and playfully batted her eyelashes at him, "What? Do you miss me already?"  
  
Sousuke couldn't even laugh. When Aoi noticed that, she dropped her bogus gleefulness and sighed, "I tried talking with Mom about it, but she wouldn't listen. She said if we don't leave soon, Dad would lose his job."  
  
"You can live with us!" Sousuke found himself blurting out as if he had just suggested the best idea to make her stay.  
  
Aoi couldn't help but to burst into laughter once again. "Oh, Sousuke." she wiped the non-existent tear from her eye. "I wonder how my life would be from now onwards when you're not there." she mused aloud. "It'd be pretty dull, huh?" she sighed woefully.  
  
Sousuke frowned. He was just opening his mouth to declare that he was being dead serious about letting her breathe under the same roof, but Aoi proceeded to speak.  
  
"You _are_ going to continue swimming though, right?" she asked, tilting her head to search his eyes.  
  
At the unexpected question, Sousuke blinked in bewilderment but nodded in response.  
  
Aoi's lips stretched up into a relieved beam at his reply. "Good." she nodded delightfully.  
  
"I hope one day, when we're older, I get to see you swim again."  
  
All Sousuke could do at that moment was to look away from her smile that he loved so much and neglect the tugging pain at his chest. He could tell just how much he was going to miss her once her presence was not felt. He was going to miss her so, so much.  
  
  
  
  
"Sousuke. Oi, Sousuke."  
  
Startled, Sousuke fell out of the thick clouds in his head and finally noticed Matsuoka Rin, his close friend since elementary school, standing in front of him in his swimwear. "Rin." Sousuke called. "What's up?" he asked, pretending as if he had never unintentionally ignoring the redhead.  
  
Rin placed his hands on his hips as he suspiciously asked, "You've been out of it lately. Are you okay?"  
  
Sousuke tousled his hair back, letting them fall in the perfect places as he stood up. "I've just had a lot in my head. But don't worry. I'm fine." he tried to assure his friend.  
  
"Are you sure? If you're feeling unwell, you can just go back to the dorm and rest, you know?" Rin frowned in concern.  
  
Sousuke shook his head, "Nah, I'm good. Let's just go and have a match. You wouldn't want to lose to your dear Haru tomorrow at the joint practice now, would we?"  
  
In an instant, Rin looked fired up. Pumping his fist and flashing his sharp teeth, he declared, "I'm going to beat that Haru! I'll prove to him how much I've trained! Okay, let's go! I'll ask Ai to be the referee."  
  
Sousuke immediately felt relieved having diverted the topic. Slowly, he followed Rin towards the indoor pool and stood on the vacant starting platform. Putting on his swimming cap and goggles, he looked forward in preparation.  
  
"On your mark!" Sousuke heard Ai cried from the side and naturally bent into position.  
  
"Get set! GO!"  
  
_Splash!_  
  
All this time, he thought swimming would be his getaway—to get his mind off of Aoi—but obviously, it didn't work.  
  
He just missed her too much.  
  
  
  
  
Clad in her green jersey, the seventeen-year old Aoi was nonchalantly sitting cross-legged on one of the luckily dry starting platforms. From above her "seat", she quietly observed the four guys slicing and slashing through the water with their own strokes and styles. There was Nagisa with his breaststroke; Rei with his butterfly; Makoto on his back; and Haru with his famed freestyle.  
  
It was safe to say that rather than practicing seriously, they were just playing around. Well, there was Haru minding his own business and appreciating the existence of water. And there was the trio starting a water fight that had been started by (unsurprisingly) Nagisa.  
  
_Beep!_  
  
The screeching sound of a whistle caused everyone to look over to the side where Matsuoka Gou started berating like a mother. While Aoi watched in amusement, a figure appeared behind her.  
  
"Aoi-san, if you want to come here so much, you can just submit a form to be an official member, you know?" Amakata-sensei sighed at the sight of the girl once again at the Iwatobi Swim Club.  
  
"No, thank you. I am an aimless traveler." Aoi calmly replied with a palm raised, as if making a vow. "You come here every single day! That's barely aimless, Aoi-san!" Amakata-sensei cried in disbelief.  
  
Aoi clutched a hand to her "injured" ear with a pout.  
  
"Ama-chan's right, Aoi-chan! Sign up into the club!" Nagisa popped out of the water in front of Aoi with a bright beam on his face.  
  
Rei crossed his muscular arms and nodded in agreement, "I don't have any reason to reject Aoi-senpai joining. After all, it already feels like she is a part of the swimming club."  
  
"I agree, Aoi-senpai! I one-hundred percent agree! Please join the club!" Gou came hopping over like an over-excited bunny. "It's getting kind of lonely being the only girl. You are going to join, right?" Gou batted her eyelashes, staring at the older girl pleadingly.  
  
"Uh..." Aoi started to feel burdened by the situation and was ready to bolt off, but she was startled by another head popping out of the water in front of her.  
  
Apparently, it was the boy she was closest to amongst all the members, the boy with olive green hair; stunning, soft green eyes; and a gentle smile—namely Tachibana Makoto. "Please join us, Aoi." he said with a smile that was so bewitching that Aoi lost her voice to go against him.  
  
Nonetheless, she quickly regained her composure and spoke, "I just want to watch you guys swim, okay? Don't mind me and swim away, my mermaids." she casually shooed them away with her hands.  
  
"Aww, come on, Aoi-chan! You've been club-less this whole time. Join us!" Nagisa jutted out his bottom lip, attacking the girl with his legendary puppy eyes.  
  
Aoi quickly looked away, "Nope. Don't give me that face after you openly insulted my club-less culture."  
  
"Aoi-chan!" the younger guy started whining, earning a groan from Aoi.  
  
"Do you want to watch our joint-training tomorrow at Samezuka?" another voice which had been silent this whole time finally sounded. The toneless voice belonged to none other than Nanase Haruka, or Haru as she liked to call him. From afar, his facade was still as stony as ever. "Then you can decide whether you want to join or not."  
  
At his suggestion, Aoi grew quiet but she felt pressure building up on her shoulders as she scanned the expecting faces looking up at her.  
  
In the end, feeling defeated, she blew a sigh. "Fine. I'll think about it."  
  
"Way to go, Vice Captain Haru-chan!" Nagisa cheered while punching the air in excitement.  
  
Aoi rolled her eyes with an amused smile and mischievously dipped her foot into the water before kicking towards Nagisa, sending splashes of water at his face.  
  
"Aoi-chan! Meanie!" once again did the blond bawled.  
  
  
  
  
That very next day, it was yet another morning filled with stressful Math calculation and Chemistry formulae that almost drove Aoi insane. At this rate, all the things cramping her head were foreign letters and massive amount of numbers. By the time the bell rang to signify lunch break, she was already out of gas at her desk. Conveniently, she sat all the way at the back right in front of Haru, while Makoto sat next to the former, thus the two were quick enough to poke the girl awake.  
  
"Aoi, let's go for lunch." she heard Makoto's voice above her head that was hidden within the protection of her tired arms.  
  
All that came out of her mouth in reply were incoherent gibbers and blubbers, which could be barely translated to, "I have been pushed to my limits. Leave me to die in peace."  
  
Haru, who was already standing next to her, strangely understood her nonsensical burbling and deadpanned, "No. Get up. My mackerel is waiting."  
  
Makoto chuckled and crouched down so he could look at the girl better. Folding his arms on the side of her desk, he softly spoke, "You should eat, Aoi. You're coming with us to the joint-training, after all. We can't have you come with us with an empty stomach."  
  
Again, all Aoi could manage were inaudible reply.  
  
"Come on. Get up now, little lady." he cooed and tilted his head. Tentatively, he reached out a hand and gently swept Aoi's fringe aside to finally reveal her closed eye. Her short eyelashes that she hated so much cascaded downwards, casting delicate shadows over her chubby cheek.  
  
_Poke!_  
  
Makoto just couldn't help himself, laughing all the while his index finger created a little depression into Aoi's cheek as he poked into the softness, much to the girl's chagrin. "Wow! It's as soft as I imagined it'd be!" Makoto chimed in happiness, repeatedly poking it. He erupted into another fits of laughter when Aoi pretended to bite off his finger, but Makoto was still amused by the chubbiness of her cheek.  
  
"Stop." Aoi tiredly whined, reaching a limp arm over to Haru and grabbing his sleeve, proceeding to tugging at it like a child. "Haru, help. Your boyfriend is bullying me." she frowned, her face never leaving the desk.  
  
Haru sighed, ignoring the girl's whine to be rescued and only listening to the sound of his stomach growling in despair. "We have to go now." he frowned, but even that was barely noticeable considering how he rarely even used a muscle to crack a smile.  
  
"Let's go eat now, okay? You can continue napping in the bus later." Makoto suggested at the exhausted Aoi. When the girl was still adamant to stick her face to her desk forever, it was then Haru and Makoto knew they had to use their last resort: both of them grabbing onto Aoi's arms and proceeding to drag her out of the classroom, ignoring her screams to be released and dodging the incredulous stares coming from the other students.  
  
  
  
  
It was at the rooftop where the four members of the swimming team and Aoi gathered to enjoy their lunch. Well, the latter mostly just snatched food off someone else's chopsticks since she "forgot" to prepare her lunch—she didn't, she just sucked at cooking and thought it'd be ridiculous to poison herself.  
  
"Aoi-senpai! You just ate my last piece of broccoli!" Rei barked, his eyes itchy from the lack of "beauty" his lunch was suffering now because of Aoi's constant thievery.  
  
Nagisa laughed and pulled out his favourite school lunch—"rock" and "hopping" bread, basically a bread with strawberry jam, marmalade, and chocolate on top. "I bought Iwatobi-chan special breads today, Aoi-chan! Eat with me!" he happily invited her but Aoi gave him a look. "It's not time for dessert yet, Nagisa. Do you even eat rice?"  
  
Nagisa jutted out his lips into a petulant pout, "Fine! You don't get to eat this 480 yen goodness!"  
  
"It's expensive!" Aoi retorted. She then felt a gentle grip on her arm and was yanked back. When she turned around, Makoto was smiling at her. "Come here. I told you before i wouldn't mind sharing my lunch."  
  
Aoi grinned and immediately occupied the space next to him, proceeding to open her mouth like a baby bird. Makoto chuckled and brought the egg roll into her mouth with his chopsticks. For the next few minutes, he was like a mother bird feeding its starving baby.  
  
Suddenly, the door was swung open and out came Gou with quite the massive-sized lunch box in her arms. "Is everyone already here? I brought you a well-balanced lunch so you can be on your best conditions to go against my brother." she kicked the door close and approached the group.  
  
"Is this the infamous lunch with protein powder you guys were talking about?" Aoi cautiously stared at the lunch box that was laid out.  
  
Gou shot her a glare, "Aoi-senpai, lucky you because I skipped the protein and made decent food this time."  
  
"Well then, can I have some?" Aoi grinned like a child.  
  
"No." the younger girl responded 0.01 second later. She then started reproaching the swimmers like a mother once more, starting with Nagisa who was still quenching his sweet tooth. That ended with the blond hanging onto the girl's leg for mercy as his lunch was confiscated. Next, it was Haru and his mackerel. For once, he looked as if he wanted to cry when his lunch was taken away. It was a never-ending lecture.  
  
  
  
  
"No way... No one told me Samezuka is rich." drawled Aoi with an awed countenance on her face. The girl was struck with awe with her head lifted high as she stood before the huge building in front her. From outside, she could already hear the sound of swimmers diving into the water and whistles screeching deafeningly.  
  
"Wow. So _this_ is the Samezuka indoor pool." she said in amazement, calculating in her head the massive difference between Iwatobi Swim Club's small pool and Samezuka's... _building_.  
  
"Our pool is a mere minuscule as compared to this... pool paradise." Aoi found herself blurting out her thoughts aloud.  
  
"Sophisticated, huh?" Gou spoke next to her. "Onii-chan sure has it good." she sighed in pure envy.  
  
"Rin-chan! We have arrived to kick your and your team's asses!" Nagisa came running pass the two girls towards the door, but not before getting choked and forced into a halt by Makoto who easily grabbed onto the back of the blond's shirt.  
  
"Not so loud, Nagisa. We're in another school, remember? Let's not be rude." the Captain sighed, disciplining the younger boy.  
  
"That's right, Nagisa-kun. As representatives from Iwatobi High School, we must show some professionalism and—"  
  
_SLAM!_  
  
All six heads turned towards the double doors that were now wide open, revealing a tall, charismatic, muscly redhead who held so much resemblance to the petite Gou.  
  
"So you have come, Haru! Hah! I hope you're prepared to be defeated by my fearsome team and be served with a meal of shame!" the boy cackled towards the sky with his hands on his hips, looking almost like a villainous character.  
  
"Talk about professionalism." Makoto deadpanned. "Yeah, tell me about it." Aoi added, shaking her head in disbelief.  
  
It was barely there, but Haru had this smirk on his face that spoke, "Bring it on."  
  
  
  
  
"Welcome to Samezuka Academy. We are more than pleased to be having Iwatobi Swim Team join our training." the third-year Samezuka Swim Team's Captain spoke with pride and leadership. "My name is Mikoshiba Seijurou and I am the captain of the team. Let's do our best for this one-day joint-training."  
  
Makoto and the others simultaneously bowed in reverence, "We will be in your care."  
  
Aoi lifted her head back up but found herself frozen in a half-bow the moment her eyes landed on a boy—or better yet, a _man_ —climbing up the edge of the pool, glistening with water from head to toe. He still adorned the sun-kissed skin that Aoi had always made fun of when she was young (but secretly worshiped), short black hair, and _oh_ , those eyes. How could she ever forget her childhood best friend?  
  
"Aoi, are you alright?" she heard Makoto calling for her but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the boy.  
  
As if he had heard Aoi's name being uttered, that same boy turned his head finally and the way his eyes widened when he saw her—oh God, she was in bliss.  
  
He remembered. _He remembered!_  
  
"Aoi?"  
  
The way his voice had grown so deep compared to his child-like voice the last time they had spoken with each other, Aoi realized just how long she had not been by his side. He grew so unbelievably much in the span of only four years.  
  
Before she know it, she was already running towards the boy with longing tears in her eyes, plowing right into his open arms and burying her face in his toned chest.  
  
"Sousuke!"  
  
Her voice cracked as it screamed just how much she had missed her dear best friend.


End file.
